Between the Sun and Moon
by TheSilverScarecrow
Summary: The factions are waring with each other and the Legion, but one Blood Elf cares only for the protection of her people - however, she had no idea the help she needed would come from a Kaldorei. Original Characters
1. Chapter 1

**A/N - Dear WoWers, please, _please_ understand that as much as I love the game, I know there are gaping wholes in my lore knowledge. I'm trying to be as accurate as I can but I'm attempting to tell one tiny story in a vast universe, so I may screw up from time to time or change certain things to better fit the plot. I'm not doing it to be annoying - I just genuinely need to get this story out (its been bugging me for weeks!) So if there is anything little not quite right, I apologise. If its something massive please let me know (kindly) and if its in my power, I'll amend the story slightly. **

**To my loyal Naruto FanFic readers - I'm sorry. I've been awful at updating lately and it has literally been this stories fault. I'll get back to it - I promise!**

 **And finally, to my husband - thank you for introducing me to this awesome world ^^  
**

 **DISCLAIMER - Obvs don't own Blizz, WoW or any NPC's that may pop up in the story.**

 _Chapter 1 - The Rogue_

Loriana Soulfire stood on her grand balcony, deep emerald eyes gazing over her island home of Quel-Danas. Her bedroom was situated high up in the northern most spire overlooking Suns Reach and out over the vast ocean. Originally she had been put in a south-facing room, but years of daily begging had finally swayed her father and he had allowed the move. She just couldn't stand looking out and seeing the jagged scar left in the earth by the Scourge of undead years ago. Nothing grew there anymore, despite the Elves best efforts, and it saddened her beyond reason.

It had been almost two years since she had swapped rooms and it had really only happened because Lor'themar Theron, the Regent Lord of Quel-Thalas, had overheard her pleading. Despite his fearsome appearance, decked out in all sorts of shining armour in the typical red her people preferred, he had been rather susceptible to her damsel-in-distress plight – something she instantly used to her advantage. Naturally, her father could hardly refuse the Regent, so she had ended up with this room.

The grand furnishings, precious silken robes hanging in the closet and eclectic collection of trinkets on the shelves and tables scattered around had also been courtesy of her Lord. It didn't take a genius to figure out she had somehow managed to gain his favour and for some reason, her general indifference towards him appeared to only strengthen his affection. Thankfully, he still hadn't attempted to pursue any kind of serious relationship with her. Well, she supposed he was kept quite busy in the Blood Elf Capitol of Silvermoon City, governing the Kingdom of Quel-Thalas and working hard to raise their people to glory.

She glanced in the direction of the Sunwell, the centre of Sin'dorei magic, and sighed heavily.

"Everything ok, Loriana?"

She turned away from the warm night to gaze over at the old mage lounging on a giant, crimson chair. She was one of the Dawnstar Village Elders and though ancient, still appeared youthful with her beautiful golden hair piled high on top of her head and her graceful, slender features.

Naravann Embershade had been watching over her since she was five. As a great mage, her father had enlisted her services to train his rebellious daughter into an upstanding and powerful practitioner of the arcane. It had backfired spectacularly. Barely three days in Naravann gave up. After realising Soulfire Sr only wanted his daughter to possess magic, she had to take it upon herself to discover the girl's true calling. Unsurprisingly, the life of a rogue had piqued the little troublemaker's interest and from that point on, Naravann's life had been a series of bail outs and constant reprimanding of the little orange-haired devil. The girl was stubborn and wilful, but her kindness won the mage over and once Loriana was older (and much less of a nuisance) the two had become firm friends. She was lucky to have such an influential member of Quel-Danas on her side as the majority of her Sin'dorei kin either ignored her or treated her like a pest. When accompanied by Naravann, however, they mostly let her be. Once Lor'themar had entered into the equation, she had become something of a celebrity and her fellow elves had begun trateing her with a cloyingly sickening sweetness she knew to be entirely fake. Knew, because nothing could be kept secret for long from a stealthed rogue. It was the norm for her to practise her skills of concealment and she often overheard many things whilst on the search for fine wines to take back to Naravann, who cleverly refrained from asking where the younger elf acquired the alcohol.

Loriana wished she could say she cared very little for the opinions of her brethren, but living the life of a rogue on an island practically full of mages (or the occasional paladin or warrior) was pretty lonely. She supposed that truthfully she could make more of an effort by sneaking around less, but that made being a rogue pretty pointless, really. For the most part, she was content with her one close friend. Being ignored by her father granted her liberties she wouldn't ordinarily have had (he was still quite bitter she wasn't a mage, even fifteen years later) and being favoured by Lor'themar meant she was basically free to do as she pleased without rebuttal. To her credit though, she rarely played the 'boyfriend' card - because technically he wasn't – preferring instead to rely on her own wit and wiles.

"You're worried about tomorrow, aren't you?" Naravann intruded on her reverie and she pouted at the old elf.

"No," she replied sulkily, which only seemed to affirm the mage's suspicion as the woman chuckled, green eyes sparkling through the dim, candlelit gloom. Those eyes were the only reason she sometimes wished she had become a mage. The green glow was, well – magical. Loriana had a connection with arcane, but nowhere near the level of a mage, so she had always thought her eyes fairly dull in comparison.

"Everyone is a little scared the first time they leave home," Naravann shrugged, taking a sip of mulled wine Loriana has recently liberated from a nearby tavern and smacking her lips together with a satisfied hum of approval. She glancedback at the younger elf, shooting her a wry smile. "Your father still appears to be under the impression I'm accompanying you."

Loriana chuckled. "I'm practically a child in the eyes of Elves, it makes sense to have an adult coming with me."

Naravann gave a derisive bark of laughter. "You're no child."

With a sly smirk, Loriana picked up a cup and poured herself some wine as well, breathing in the spiced liquid. "I'm bored here," she shrugged. "You are the only reason I stayed when I finished my training at sixteen. I would have missed you too much."

"Humph," the older woman snorted. "So what you're is, you're not going to miss me now?"

Loriana spared her an exasperated look. "Of course I am, but I do believe you were the one encouraging me to go." The young rogue raised her eyebrows pointedly and Naravann smiled.

The Regent Lord's invitation to join him in Silvermoon for a while had been well-timed. Loriana's original rogue trainer, Elara, would often stop in amidst her travels to test her abilities and share news from Azeroth regarding the ongoing battles between factions and against the Legion, as well as the Sin'dorei's constant war with the Scourge. At first, it had all sounded so fantastical, but the more she learned, the heavier her heart had become. She had been lamenting the woes of the world and her complete inability to help during Elara's last visit when the elf had revealed both news of the Grand Magistar Rommath's supposed plans to reconnect with their forgotten kin in the Outlands (much to Loriana's complete shock) and with Lor'themar's invitation. Naravann had pointed out Loriana's chance to actually be an influential player by speaking into the Regent's ear, so she had accepted.

She may know very little of the world outside the Isle of Quel-Danas, but one thing she had always been certain of was that if the Sin'dorei were ever truly going to achieve the glory they were all so keen on having, it was not going to be given to them by fel or arcane means. She had been mind-blown to find out that Naravann had agreed. Many discussions between the two had enabled her to realise a singularly important truth – they couldn't, as a race, fix everything on their own.

The revival of the Sunwell had seen them forge ahead, but every Blood Elf knew that if the Legion turned towards the again, they would fall. What the elves in power apparently failed to see, though, was that to survive, perhaps they need to seek help beyond the Horde. This thought in itself wasn't an uncommon one (Loriana had overheard plenty of shady conversations in her short life), however, fear kept her people in check. If they attempted to break away, every orc, troll and goblin would be thrown their way by Horde Warchief's and this time, far less than ten percent of the population would survive.

Loriana had realised her people were stuck. They needed an ally not only powerful enough to protect them, but honest enough to actually follow through on the promise. She had to find a way to King Wyrnn. Elara had spoken of the Human Monarch with a begrudging respect. When Loriana ventured the idea of approaching him to her father, however, she had been shot down in a bout of arrogant rage. The humans had turned on the Blood Elves once and apparently most of her people still held on quite tightly to that grudge. Moreover, the humans were in the Alliance with the Kaldorei and every Elven child knew their dark kin were the reason they had begun on this path of strife over ten thousand years ago.

Loriana had thought this to be a solid fact and blamed the Night Elves as acutely as the rest of her people, but Naravann was wise and had taught her to constantly challenge every truth she had ever known and eventually, a strange sense of acceptance had settled on her. Perhaps the Kaldorei had been right to cast their magically corrupted sisters and brothers aside. Most societies tend to fear what they don't understand and perhaps banishing those High Elves was the reason the Children of the Stars had been able to retain their affinity with nature.

Slowly, this thought had taken root in her mind and Loriana was convinced that somehow, that was where the answer lay. She knew her people would never let go of magic, but perhaps there was a way to reacquaint themselves with the natural powers in the world. Perhaps combining arcane and natural energies could somehow lead them to a peaceful future.

Unfortunately, the majority of Blood Elves regarded the Starborn with a burning, scornful hatred, so she had no idea where to begin. That was until Lor'themar's invite. To be in the city that was the heart and soul of Quel-Thalas with all the powerful leaders of her people – surely somehow, one little elf who refused to be beaten might be able to make a difference. Even if it took hundreds of years, even if she wasn't the one to find the eventual answer, she hoped that by just _trying_ , she might be the tiny pebble that causes ripples to race across the surface of a pond. Perhaps one conversation heard by the right ears would lead to something bigger than riding around on the coattails of the Horde, waiting for the day the Alliance, Scourge or Legion came calling, only to find their so-called allies had left them to die in the dirt. There were so few Sin'dorei in Azeroth to truly matter anymore. The Horde were only really interested in their fel-ridden kin in the Outlands. Lor'themar's renouncement of the Sunstrider house and their corrupt Prince, though correct, had affectively nailed the lid to their coffin. The Horde had no real need of the Quel-Thalas Elves and the Alliance held no ties with them. When the Legion came, they would be on their own.

So, the once troublesome, carefree Loriana Soulfire had decided to try and take matters into her own hands. Arrogant? Perhaps, but her race was sort of known for it, after all.

Tomorrow, she would set out for Silvermoon, beyond that… Well the world was vast and a whole plethora of possibility awaited.

* * *

"Are you prepared?"

"Yes, father."

Vyarus Soulfire nodded, more to himself than anything, glancing at the trunks being loaded onto the sailing vessel. It wasn't quite a ship, but definitely larger than your average row boat. Loriana watched as a small frown furrowed his brow and discretely rolled her eyes. Here he goes again.

"I really don't understand why I can't just send you through a portal. Or why you don't simply take the bridge..."

Loriana sighed, but before she could explain for what had to be the hundredth time, Noravann cut her off. "Honestly, Vyarus, how to you expect her to hone her skills if she see's nothing of the world?"

"She's a rogue," he shrugged, "what's to hone?"

Loriana gave him a flat look before turning to pick up his pack. She really didn't want to get into an argument with him before leaving. Who knew when she's see him again.

"Farewell, father."

He tapped his staff lightly on the ground, a habit he'd had for as long as she could remember.

"Send word when you reach Silvermoon."

She nodded once before strolling across the gangplank and onto the wooden vessel. Glancing around, she decided to sit herself on the trunk containing her armour and weapons which she had snuck on board earlier that morning. Her father had felt that Naravann was the only protection Loriana was going to need. Truthfully, she agreed, but her father wasn't aware that the mage wasn't accompanying then the entire way. Besides, Lor'themar had also sent a guard of ten elves to join her on the journey to the great city, one that was actually taking them to a docking port in the Hinterlands so that they could travel through the mountains and back north to Silvermoon under the pretense she wanted to try her hand at hunting. Mostly, it was so Naravann would have a decent chance at slipping away. The Lord had also been confused as to why she didn't simply teleport, but at least he had accepted it and sent help instead of trying to dissuade her at least twice a day. Funnily enough, her father had been involved in her life more that week than he ever had before. Naravann insisted it was because he was saddened that his little girl was striking out on her own. They had never been that close, however, so Loriana believed it had more to do with hhim fearing the Regent Lord's wrath if she didn't make it. Unperturbed, she waved to him one last time as the boat pulled away from the harbour and began its journey south, before turning her eyes towards the ocean.

"Excited?" Naravann asked, coming to settle beside her.

Loriana grinned at her friend. "The whole world in opening to me."

Naravann chuckled, brushing a blonde strand of hair out of her eyes.

Loriana looked around conspiratorially to ensure they were out of ear shot. "Are you going to be ok?"

Naravann rolled her eyes. "Dear, who do you think you're talking to?"

Loriana smiled. The older woman had a point. "Besides, Mordenai sent for me personally."

Naravann had known this friend of hers for a very long time and when he had requested her help, she had agreed without hesitation. Her only problem had been finding the right opportunity to leave without arousing suspicion and Loriana's departure had been the perfect cover. The secrecy was all due to the fact that Mordenai resided in Shadowmoon Valley – the Outlands. Travelling there was heavily scrutinised and forbidden for most of them as their leaders were afraid of loosing more Blood Elves to Fel magic and corruption. Apparently, this Mordenai fellow had very little to do with the Horde or other elves and was simply there trying to protect a dwindling Drake population.

The sun was fully risen now and Loriana enjoyed the way it sparkled off the waves as the boat gently danced across the surface. She turned one last time to watch a shrinking Ques-Danas. She was moving further away from the only home she had ever known. It dawned on her that she may not see it again for a very long time and the strangest sadness settled on her. She never imagined she would miss it.

Naravann shifted beside her, obviously aware of what the younger elf was feeling. "Silvermoon is a grand city and a lot of the architecture is reminiscent of Quel-Danas. I'll admit it doesn't quite have the same tranquility but it will feel like home in no time."

Loriana smiled her thanks, appreciating her friend's words, before turning towards the gigantic land mass looming along the right-hand side and stretching on as far as she could see. A thrill of excitement chased any misgivings away ad she bounced to her feet, moving with the sway of the boat as she raced to the helm.

This was the start of something big – she could feel it…


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 – The Hunter**

"You will be told when I'm ready to tell you!"

Thel'ra sighed. His small troop had been through this several times since leaving the Alliance camp during the early hours of the morning – two days ago. The little Gnome had been constantly questioning what their objective actually was and although he was curious too, he had worked with Captain Jonah Harrington before and knew the stubborn human was a strict believer in following his military code. If Commander Baylor had told the Captain that his little party were on a need-to-know basis, then nothing could persuade him to share.

Thel'ra caught the glowing blue eyes of the Draenei working with them. He had never met her before this mission, but she held herself with quiet determination and he had a feeling she was quite intelligent. He found her pretty, in a sense, with her pale blue skin and darker, navy hair. She was gigantic, obviously, but her delicately curved face was usually smiling and friendly. Even the horns sweeping from her head looked feminine. And dangerous. A combination he quite admired. He'd always wanted to touch a curving, shiny Draenei horn but he was fairly certain it would be considered rude. She was a priestess and their healer, and the long flowing robes clung to her impossibly tall, slim frame. The legs though. Too goat like for his taste. Thankfully they were mostly hidden under her flowing skirts. He really didn't like the thought of being stomped on by those vicious looking hooves. She was at least a head taller than him, which was disquieting for some reason. As a Night Elf, he was accustomed to being the tallest in most groups.

The look he shared with her now was full of mutual understanding. If they weren't being told the details, it was probably because they weren't going to like it. Thel had been doing his part for Darnassus and the Alliance for so many years now he'd lost count. Sometimes he felt like he was just another well-trained dog jumping into danger to protect an unappreciative master.

Speaking of…

Without warning, Thel'ra put his fingers to his lips and blew hard. The four humans in his company jumped and the Gnome spun around in shock. The Draenei female, Avaari he believed she was called, hid a small smile behind her long fingers.

"By God's man," Harrington huffed indignantly. Thel glanced down at the dark haired man and shrugged none-to-apologetically, waiting. Several seconds passed before a large shape detached itself from the trees, glaring menacingly at the humans and padding silently towards him. Most of the group backed away from the giant spirit wolf and Thel'ra had to admit, the shaggy black-and-blue, white-eyed beast was intimidating to behold. However, it did have one particular weakness. The Kaldorei scratched under his companion's chin and it instantly relaxed, tongue rolling from its mouth with a happy sounding huff.

"How's my good boy?" Karoma's tail wagged happily in response.

"You still haven't really told us what we're doing out here," Dobrik Steamfizzle brought everyone's attention back to him, glaring haughtily up at them all. The Gnome had his arms crossed over his grey and purple robes.

The Captain sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose before smoothing over his black van-dyke styled beard, dark brown eyes peering unhappily at Dobrik. "I told you when we left it involves attacking a caravan of Blood Elves."

"Yes," Dobrik snapped impatiently, "but you won't tell us why or any other details. The Sin'dorei should not be taken lightly, Harrington."

"Because those are your orders! And its 'Captain' Harrington," A pompous blonde male interrupted. Thel'ra had already decided thirty seconds after leaving their Stronghold that he didn't like this human. He was so far up Harrington's ass he could probably see daylight.

"That's enough, Robert." Apparently the Captain was getting over it too.

"You _still_ -" Dobrik began, clearly gearing up for a fight. Thel'ra was amazed one tiny creature could hold so much rage, but he had also had enough.

"Let it go, Dobrik," he cut in assertively.

The Gnome turned his chartreuse eyes to glare at him, instead. Not exactly what Thel had intended. "Are you content to just blindly follow this man, Night Elf?"

Thel'ra sighed and began tying back his long, silvery hair. He took only from the front what would have otherwise fallen across his eyes, placing it in a loose knot high on the back of his head, leaving the rest to fall dead straight behind his shoulders and down his back. When satisfied, he met the Gnomes gaze. "Not particularly," he said with a shrug, "but if I don't like the final order, I just won't do it."

"How dare you blatantly state your intention to disobey your Captain's orders!"

Thel shot an unfriendly look at Robert. "Feel free to try and stop me, little man," he quipped back, drawing himself up to his full height of seven foot nine – slightly taller than the average Elf and plenty intimidating.

The anger burning from Roberts tiny eyes showed he was self-righteous enough to do something stupid and Thel's hand instinctively twitched towards his bow. Thankfully, Karoma decided to put an end to it, getting to his feet and letting a low growl trickle from between his bared teeth. Thel'ra placed a calming hand reassuringly on the giant wolf, stroking his soft head gently.

"Easy," he murmured, eyes never leaving Robert's pale blue ones.

"That is enough," Harrington barked. "The target will be moving and we have to get in position."

"And the target is..?" Dobrik intruded.

With a loud groan, Thel turned and sprinted off through the woodlands, his faithful companion trotting slightly behind, their paces evenly matched.

Thel'ra cared very little for the politics of War and was surprised at himself for reacting to Robert at all, as he usually preferred to keep his head down. Malfurion, the leader of his people, had ordered Thel's Commander to take his fighters to the Eastern Kingdoms to work under King Varian Wyrnn; so that's what he had been doing for the past six months.

He had decided not to mingle much during his days off (which were few and far between, anyway) but he had attracted attention regardless. He had the misfortune of saving Commander Baylor's life several weeks ago during a surprise attack from the Horde on Goldshire and he had been requested in the Hinterlands. The majority of their work revolved around killing the masses of undead and spirits that wander around the Northern part of the Kingdoms, and raiding known Horde camps in the area. Nothing had been confirmed, but Thel'ra had a strong suspicion that the Commander's end goal was the Sin'dorei Kingdom of Quel-Thalas. He seemed to have some kind of vendetta against the children of Blood, but he had yet to hear why. Thel'ra, for one, just wanted to stay as far away from them and their corrupt magics as possible. His people warned against Blood Elves constantly and often told stories about foolish Kaldorei who had been caught under the spell of their distant cousins and lost forever. He wasn't sure how much of it he believed, but the caution was ingrained in him all the same.

Thel drew to an immediate stop at the edge of a clearing. His long ears twitched as he picked up the sound of voices. The tone was far from happy and the words were oddly distorted, yet somehow, he realised he was able to recognise some of them.

He felt the presence of the rest of his party as they came up behind him and he held a hand up to signal their need for silence. Captain Harrington came up beside the Night Elf and poked his head through the trees to get a proper look. When he was satisfied, he turned to the group and gave them a strong nod. This was their target.

The humans, composed mostly of warriors, bean quietly drawing swords and shields. Thel'ra took hold of his large bow and notched an arrow, ready to fire at a moments notice. He stroked his thumb over the feathery shaft, waiting…

Something vast flew overhead sending a tumultuous wind tearing through the trees and throwing Thel's cloak into disarray. As he shielded his eyes to try and catch a glimpse of what was happening, a tremendous roar ripped through the air, causing the very ground to vibrate and Thel'ra to grit his teeth. Several of the humans had dropped their weapons to cover their ears. Karoma was attempting to appear small, his sensitive ears flat against his head. Avaari was holding onto Dobrik as the poor Gnome looked like he was being shaken apart.

Finally, the sound stopped and they were plunged into a deafening silence. Nobody moved as they tried to make sense of the world around them.

The ground shook once more as the beast hit the floor in the clearing. There was a short pause before wind buffeted through the trees once more. Thel'ra looked up in time to see a gigantic dragon soar overhead, its wings creating a mighty vacuum of sound on each beat. The great beasts scales were a glimmering azure and the saddle affixed clearly indicated a rider. Thel was glad it was moving away at great speed. Clearly whoever could tame that monster was not to be messed with. He stared in wonder as it raced towards the horizon. He had seen a few dragons on his travels but nothing quite as spectacular as that creature. Scratching his head, Thel'ra turned, awestruck, towards his companions.

"Wow," the human woman, Maria, muttered. Most nodded in agreement before Harrington cleared his throat quietly, drawing their attention.

Suddenly, a joyous laugh floated through the air and the Captain pointed towards the sound. Thel'ra crept forward and his eyes finally fell upon his prey. He wasn't sure what he was expecting but the sight of a female Blood Elf waving exuberantly in the direction the dragon had flown wasn't quite it. One of the heavenly armoured guards moved up beside her, planting a shield of red and gold that was almost the full length of his body into the ground at his feet. He spoke to her and the joy vanished instantly, replaced by an expression somewhere between disgust and boredom. She waved a hand and the ten Elven soldiers fell into place around her.

Thel'ra twirled an arrow around with one hand. "It's not a difficult shot," he mused in hushed tones.

Harrington's hand closed on his arm and the Captain shook his head.

"Baylor want's her alive."

"What?" Dobrik hissed.

Thel was equally bewildered. He hadn't been under Baylor's command for long but it was widely understood the man took no prisoners, least of all Sin'dorei.

"I'm not traipsing through the forests with a pissed off Blood Elf!" the little Gnome seemed to inflate with anger.

"Perhaps he wishes to make an example of her?" Avaari offered. That sounded pretty likely.

"So I'm here to take out the guards," Thel'ra assumed. Harrington shook his head and the Starborne raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"Dobrik will target them from range while we attack. Avaari will hang back and heal. The rest of us will engage while Thel'ra targets the girl."

The Night Elf folded his arms, bow now dangling from one hand. "That makes no sense. I'm a long range fighter, what is the point in sending me in close-quarters for a capture?"

The Captain gave him a rather flat look. "She's a rogue."

 _Ah._

Thel'ra turned his attention back to the Sin'dorei woman.

"Are you sure?" He was sceptical. She didn't exactly look the part, wearing expensive flowing silks. Then again, the number of trunks and crates being pulled along by large, strange looking birds could contain enough gear for a platoon.

"The Commander's intel is sound," Harrington confirmed, motioning to his team to prepare themselves. "We'll know in a moment one way or another. If she is a rogue, she'll vanish the instant the fight begins."

Robert made a sound of disgust. "Thieves and cowards, the whole class."

Thel ignored him, getting ready to send up a flare of energy. His class, the hunters, were particularly adept at detecting rogues. If she did vanish, he would still be able to see her. Admittedly, she would appear faint, almost like a spirit, but he had more of a chance than the others. Karoma was at his side, tense and alert, clearly sensing the fight to come.

Captain Harrington gave him an uncharacteristic clap on the shoulder. "Capture, not kill."

Thel'ra nodded, eyes focused on his target. As she glanced at the sky, her hair moved with her, capturing the suns rays. For the briefest of moments, it gave the illusion of flames dancing through her auburn tresses. The Night Elf shook himself before squaring his shoulders and glaring at the Sin'dorei. Now was not the time for waxing poetic – he was the hunter and the prey was in his sights.

The hackles rose on Karoma as he crouched low to the ground, tail wagging slightly in anticipation. It was time to pounce.


End file.
